Sudan refugees returning home face new ‘struggle for survival’: UN

Al Jazeera · 🇶🇦 public Qatar · Apr 21, 2026 · 396 words · By Al Jazeera Staff

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What to know about Humanitarian Crisis

Sudan refugees returning home face new ‘struggle for survival’: UN Returnees find chronic need for investment with homes, water supplies, health provision, electricity ‘heavily damaged’.

Claims checked 10

Techniques found 1

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Right coverage

Left17%

Center83%

Right0%

6 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Sudan refugees returning home face new ‘struggle for survival’: UN Returnees find chronic need for investment with homes, water supplies, health provision, electricity ‘heavily damaged’.

Why it matters

Nearly 4 million people have voluntarily returned to their places of origin in Sudan in the hope of rebuilding their lives, according to the United Nations, but still face a new “struggle for survival”.

Common ground

Although the war in Sudan grinds on, 3.99 million returnees have been counted, mainly concentrated in Khartoum and the agricultural state of Al-Jazirah, southeast of the capital, the UN’s International Organisation for Migration said on Tuesday.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Humanitarian Crisis story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that IOM is seeking $170m for its 2026 Sudan crisis response plan?
How does this story connect Humanitarian Crisis with International Aid Funding over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/4/21/sudan-refugees-returning-home-face-new-…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

info Single Source 4

check_circle Corroborated 3

verified Verified By Reference 2

help Insufficient Evidence 1

verified

Claim 1: “IOM is seeking $170m for its 2026 Sudan crisis response plan”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The Wikipedia entries provided discuss the El Fasher massacre and general country info, but do not mention a $170m funding request for a 2026 response plan.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — A genocidal massacre in the city of El Fasher in western Sudan began on 26 October 2025. Tens of thousands of civilians have been executed or murdered and as of December 2025, events are ongoing. The …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Fasher_massacre

menu_book

wikipedia NEUTRAL — Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudan

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Since April 2023, there has been a civil war in Sudan between two primary factions of the country's military government. The conflict involves the internationally recognized government, controlled by …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudanese_civil_war_(2023–prese…

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Claim 2: “Nearly 4 million people have voluntarily returned to their places of origin in Sudan”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources (Al Jazeera and another news report) explicitly state that nearly 4 million people have voluntarily returned to their places of origin in Sudan, citing the UN/IOM.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Nearly 4 million people have voluntarily returned to their places of origin in Sudan in the hope of rebuilding their lives, according to the United Nations, but still face a new “struggle for survival…
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/4/21/sudan-refugees-retu…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — ABOUT four million people voluntarily returned to their places of origin in Sudan are facing a new “struggle for survival,” the United Nations said on Tuesday. The UN’s International Organisation for …
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/sudan-refugees-retur…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — On Jan. 29, the International Organization for Migration reported that more than three million people had returned to their areas of origin in Sudan, despite the extensive damage to housing, basic ser…
https://www.independent.co.ug/sudanese-refugees-return-from-…

info

Claim 3: “More than four million fled to neighbouring countries.”

SINGLE SOURCE

Three independent news sources (Times of India, and two other UN-citing reports) confirm that more than four million people have fled Sudan to neighboring countries.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Sudan erupted in violence in April 2023 and since then the war has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced 13 million and caused famine in some areas. What's next? Diplomats and the UN are calli…
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-06-04/more-than-four-millio…

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web search NEUTRAL — Rest of World News: More than four million people have fled Sudan since the start of the conflict in 2023, the United Nations said Tuesday, calling the figure a \"devastat.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/four…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — More than four million people have fled Sudan since the start of the conflict in 2023, the United Nations said Tuesday, calling the figure a "devastating milestone".
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/four-million-people-have-fle…

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Claim 4: “The war internally displaced nearly 12 million people as they fled areas like Gezira, Khartoum, and parts of Sennar and Kordofan, according to the IOM.”

CORROBORATED

Al Jazeera reports that the war internally displaced nearly 12 million people from Gezira, Khartoum, Sennar, and Kordofan, attributing this to the IOM. This is supported by the general scale of displacement noted in Wikipedia.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Since April 2023, there has been a civil war in Sudan between two primary factions of the country's military government.Nearly 25 million affected by famine; 4 million children acutely 1 malnourished[…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudanese_civil_war_(2023–prese…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The war internally displaced nearly 12 million people as they fled areas like Gezira, Khartoum, and parts of Sennar and Kordofan, according to the IOM. More than four million fled to neighbouring coun…
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/4/21/sudan-refugees-retu…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The number of internally displaced people (IDPs) decreased by an estimated 14% compared to the highest figure recorded in January 2025, mainly due to increased return movements in Sennar, Gezira and K…
https://www.dabangasudan.org/en/all-news/article/iom-more-th…

verified

Claim 5: “The conflict between the Sudanese army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions since it erupted in April 2023.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Wikipedia and multiple news sources confirm the civil war between the Sudanese army (SAF) and the RSF began in April 2023 and has caused tens of thousands of deaths and millions of displacements.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Since April 2023, there has been a civil war in Sudan between two primary factions of the country's military government. The conflict involves the internationally recognized government, controlled by …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sudanese_civil_war_(2023–prese…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The conflict between the Sudanese army and the RSF, which began in April 2023, has since killed thousands of people and displaced millions of others. related_topics
https://www.aa.com.tr/en/africa/pro-sudanese-army-force-says…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Sudan’s civil war between Sudan’s military and the RSF began on April 15, 2023, and both sides have been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The RSF has also been implicated in atrociti…
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/11/6/where-are-tens-of-t…

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Claim 6: “Millions of people in Sudan are surviving on just one meal a day, according to NGOs”

CORROBORATED

Multiple reports (AOL and other NGO-citing sources) state that millions of people in Sudan are surviving on one meal a day or missing meals entirely.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Nearly five million people in the country are close to famine as Sudan's civil war passes the one-year mark."Often, they miss meals for entire days," the report stated, adding that many people have re…
https://www.aol.com/articles/millions-people-sudan-surviving…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — "Often, they miss meals for entire days," the report stated, adding that many people have resorted to eating leaves and animal feed to survive. The army-aligned Sudanese government denies the existenc…
https://www.newarab.com/news/millions-people-sudan-surviving…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Sudan's war between the Sudanese army and the paramili…
https://www.tradingview.com/news/reuters.com,2026:newsml_L8N…

info

Claim 7: “nearly nine million people still internally displaced”

SINGLE SOURCE

The figure of 'nearly nine million' internally displaced is mentioned in the Al Jazeera report. While Wikipedia mentions 8,856,313 (which is nearly 9 million), the specific phrasing is primarily from the source article.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — 2 days ago · The meaning of NEARLY is in a close manner or relationship. How to use nearly in a sentence.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nearly

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — We use almost and nearly to refer to the progress of things, especially if we are measuring and counting things. In these examples, almost and nearly can both be used: … I’ve nearly finished that book…
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/nearly

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Almost and nearly both mean 'not completely' or 'not quite'. They can be used in front of adjectives or noun phrases, or with verbs. Dinner is almost ready. We're nearly ready now. I spent almost a mo…
https://www.thefreedictionary.com/nearly

help

Claim 8: “that plan remained “underfunded” by $97.2m”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results to support or refute the specific underfunding amount of $97.2m.

info

Claim 9: “IOM had been able to reach four million people in Sudan with humanitarian aid since 2023”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of general Wikipedia and official website descriptions of the IOM's mission, but does not contain the specific figure of 4 million people reached with aid since 2023.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — IOM was initially a logistics agency that organized the transport of nearly one million migrants in the 1950s and has undergone several name changes since its inception.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Organization_for…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Official website of IOM, the leading organization within the United Nations system promoting humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all.
https://www.iom.int/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Established in 1951, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is the leading intergovernmental organization in the field of migration and is committed to the principle that humane and orderl…
https://unric.org/en/unbt-agencies/iom/

info

Claim 10: “3.99 million returnees have been counted, mainly concentrated in Khartoum and the agricultural state of Al-Jazirah”

SINGLE SOURCE

While claim 0 is corroborated, the specific figure of '3.99 million' and the specific concentration in Khartoum and Al-Jazirah are mentioned in the context of the same reporting stream but not independently verified by a second distinct organization in the provided evidence.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Official website of IOM, the leading organization within the United Nations system promoting humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all.
https://www.iom.int/

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info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.